Blue Birds
by kayceejay-1
Summary: Two blue birds show their love for each other, even after fighting and hurting. This, more than anything, helps two teenagers see how stupid they've been. [L&J Oneshot]


Lily looked out the window and saw a bird land on a twig. The bird was beautiful, a perfect mix of nature, with blue feathers ruffled up just so. It had an arched beak and two eyes focused on what Lily couldn't seem to see. It was such a pretty sight, to see that bird sitting in her tree, but the bird was alone. He cried out, over and over, a song of sadness that made her feel gut-wrenching pain. He was gorgeous, this bird, but he sat alone in the old willow tree.

"Poor birdie," she sighed, watching intently.

All of the sudden another bird, even more beautiful than the first, landed right there on the twig. They sat together, silently, for a moment, before pulling themselves up and thrusting their chests out. Lily was afraid that the birds would fight, but instead of fighting physically, they seemed to fight with their voices. They screeched, louder and louder, angrier and angrier. Lily was getting nervous; she didn't want anything to happen to the birds. But she was just a witness, she could only watch and pray that nothing bad would happen to them. When the fighting could get no worse, one of the birds took flight. The first bird, beautiful and blue, was left alone again.

"Oh no," Lily muttered. "He's by himself again."

Instead of flying off from the spot, the bird sat there. He sat in silence for minutes, and Lily watched. She heard all the sounds of nature; the crickets were still chirping, the grass was still rustling, and the clouds were still moving and casting shadows on the ground. But the bird did not move. Lily couldn't understand what was wrong. He was so graceful, why didn't he just go off and find another bird? One that wouldn't yell or scream? One that would love him for being his beautiful self, on the inside and out?

As she was pondering, she noticed that the bird began singing again. This time it was softer, sadder, than before. He kept singing his warbling song. He didn't stop, even when the previous bird re-landed on the twig. Lily feared another fight, but nothing happened. After a few more moments, the second bird joined in the song. The two birds sang a song in perfect harmony. They sang and sang until Lily knew they wanted to stop. But they didn't stop, because for a moment, they were happy. The birds stopped singing and flew off together. Lily watched until she couldn't see them anymore. A smile came on her face.

"They were meant to be."

"Yes, they were." a second voice agreed.

Startled, Lily turned to see that someone had been standing behind her, watching the birds the whole time, right along with her. She tried not to scream at him, telling him that the memory should have been for her and not for him. She wanted to yell, to tell him he was stupid for standing behind her. But she didn't. Instead, she reached her hand out slowly, and he neither flinched nor moved. He stood perfectly still, waiting for whatever she was going to do to him. She reached up and softly touched his lips. They were so slender, so soft. She ran her finger across his lips and up his cheek. She let her hand rest right above his ear, tangled in his messy hair. She pulled it between her fingers, noting the richness. She stepped back, worried about what she had just done. He still had not moved.

It was his turn. He stuck out his arm and touched her shoulders. Still not saying a word, he took a step closer to her, until they were only inches apart. He softly traced the area from her shoulders up to her jawbone. She shivered, not from cold, but from the feelings that his hand was creating. When he reached her hair, he twisted his fingers up in it.

"Lily..." he began, breaking the silence."Those birds...they...they fought and argued, and even hurt each other. But they came back to the willow tree and sang a song in harmony. Lily, those birds were in love."

She opened her mouth to speak, but the man wasn't done yet.

"Did you read my letters?" he asked, carefully. "Did you notice that I thought about you often and wrote you nearly every day? You never returned my letters, Lily, and it stung. It still stings, though not as fresh. I know that you care for me, Lily Evans, so I don't know why you won't give me a chance in this world."

"I read every one of your letters, James," she said his name carefully, as if afraid it was incorrect, "and I responded to every single one. I just..." she trailed off, taking a step back and turning her back to him. She looked out the window, searching for answers.

"You just .. what?" he questioned. If he was shocked that she had not used his surname, he did not show it. 

"I just didn't send them back."

"Why not?"

"I was afraid that I might have had feelings for you." She answered quietly, as he gently turned her back towards him. Why she was answering so truthfully, she did not know. She only knew that she had a lot to say, and was finally going to say it. "You're too smart, handsome, popular, and honest for me. I was afraid, alright? I put you in your place many a time, because you deserved it. In 5th year, you and your friends were bullies. You were, whether you chose to believe it or not. But, something happened, after the end of 5th year that showed me that you're...too good for me." For the second time, she turned away.

Shocked, James chuckled despite himself. He turned her around for the second time and she looked up at his grin and felt like punching him. She wanted him to feel pain, and she wanted him to stop smiling that stupid, _bloody_ smile at her. She yanked herself from his grasp and ran out of the common room. She ran and ran, not caring where she was heading, just as long as she got there. She faintly heard him call her name but tuned him out. When she arrived to the doors at the front of the castle, she pushed them open and kept running. She ran to Hagrid's hut without thinking, and collapsed as soon as he let her into the hut. She wasn't aware of the tears until Fang jumped up and licked them off.

"What's the matter, Lily? What's wrong?" Hagrid looked down to her, worry written on his massive face.

"Nothing..." she sniffed. "Nothing's wrong. I'm perfectly...fine..."

In the next moment, Hag rid had put her in a standing position gently and hugged her.

"It's alrigh'. I'm right 'ere." he patted her awkwardly on the back. 

"James...he, laughed at me. When I admitted, basically...that..."

"That you love 'im?" Hagrid smiled, sitting down in one of his huge chairs.

"Well, yes..."

"Don't worry about it, Lily. He loves you too, I can tell jus' by looking at 'im."

"I don't know, Hagrid."

"I do. Would you fancy some tea, Lily?"

"Yes I would." She smiled.

The next few minutes were spent chatting about things that had nothing whatsoever to do with James. Her mind kept reverting to him, but she forced him out of her head as she answered Hagrid's questions about her grades, her teachers, and her friends. She was a bit worried about eating the small, hard things on her plate resembling biscuits, but compromised by feeding it to Fang when Hagrid wasn't looking. The tea, on the other hand, was actually quite good, and when she told him, he beamed like a child.

There was a knock at the door and Lily froze.

Hagrid looked apologetically at her, and took a step out side the door, leaving it open a crack.

She heard James voice as he started speaking fast.

"Hagrid! We have to find Lily! She ran off, out the door, and I can't find her. I don't know where she went, but it's all my fault and..."

"James.." Hagrid started calmly.

James payed no attention to him and kept rambling.

"She was mad at me for laughing at her! But I wasn't laughing, not really. I was just thinking of the way her eyes twinkle when she's happy, and she _made_ me laugh, honestly. She looked so flustered and upset and angry and so cute that I just wanted to make her see what I was thinking..."

"James!" Hagrid boomed, a little less loudly.

"I love her, Hagrid." he finished somewhat lamely. "You've got to help me find her."

"Potter!"

James closed his mouth at the use of his last name. He squinted his eyes, confused, as Hagrid smiled.

"She's in 'ere, James."

"Oh." he stated bluntly, feeling like an idiot. He scuffled in the door, finally breathing normally again, his heart rate under control. But as soon as he glimpsed her red hair, he felt out of breath again and his heart would not comply with his wishes to stop hammering. He was sure she could hear it. She was so beautiful...

"Hello, Lily."

"James." she stated nonchalantly, sure that she felt as nervous as she was trying not to look.

"Lily. Please forgive me for laughing. I wasn't laughing at you, I really wasn't. I was laughing because it's so _funny_ that you think I'm too good for you. _You're_ too good for _me. _You're perfect and beautiful and smart and honest and brave and gentle and kind and sweet and ..."

"That's a lot of and's." Lily attempted to stifle her smile, but it finally emerged on her lips.

"Yes it is. There're so many good qualities about you, I could keep saying and's until I died."

When Lily kept smiling, James added, "I love you, Lily."

She felt the smile slide off her face.

She stood up and turned towards the window

"Wait. I didn't mean..I didn't mean to say that, Lily...I'm sorry..." he reached out and touched her shoulder.

"So do you love me, or don't you?" she snapped, irritated.

Without withdrawing his hand, he turned her around for the third time. "I will never stop loving you, Lily Evans. I don't care how long it takes you to get that. I will continue to remind you for the rest of my life, if I have to."

"James..." she sighed. "You're an amazing person. You could have any girl in the castle and beyond. They would all love you if they got to know you as I have. Why don't you take a chance and date one of them? You might fall in love."

"I've already fallen in love once, and if falling in love twice is as painful as the first time, no thanks."

"It's painful to love me?"

"In a sense, yes."

"Why?"

"You don't see how much you mean to me, and you think you're not good enough. That's painful. It's painful every time I see you going out with or snogging another bloke, and it's painful when you shoot down my biggest dream; to get you. I know I'm arrogant, and selfish, and stupid. But Lily, sweetheart, I'm gonna get you one day. And then the pain will stop."

"James..."

"Yeah?"

"Do you really love me?"

"Yes, I do."

Hagrid smiled for the first time as the two forgot everything in the world except each other. He watched as they professed their love for each other through their souls and into their passionate kiss. He witnessed the two teens fly off together, after singing a song in perfect harmony, metaphorically at least. From then on, Hagrid teased the couple for being his 'love birds', with more emphasis on the word bird than necessary.

If only he knew why they grinned at these words.

--

**A/n: **I was worried that this may be a bit confusing... but hopefully you guys will get it easily enough. The part with Hagrid's speech was a bit difficult for me to write, so bear with me. And for those of you still confused, Hagrid didn't know that Lily and James were watching the two birds in the beginning of the story. His analogy of "flying off together after singing a song in perfect harmony" and "love birds with more emphasis on the words bird than necessary" is just a coincidence that reminds the teens of the day they first kissed. Please let me know what you think, and if you like it! Reviews make everything worth-while. Thanks for reading!


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